If I want to borrow an ebook from the library I have to be online to read it. I can't download it to my kobo and read offline. UK libraries are a bit behind the rest of the world when it comes to lending ebooks.

If I want to borrow an ebook from the library I have to be online to read it. I can't download it to my kobo and read offline. UK libraries are a bit behind the rest of the world when it comes to lending ebooks.

Interesting. Our library (Leicestershire) allows downloads, the only problem being that the selection of ebooks available is pathetic. I have never once found a book I'm actually looking for.

Finished The Drowning Girl by Caitlin R. Kiernan. Beautiful narrative, good narrator but nothing much happened in this book. It's more of a life story about character relationships and a mysterious painting called The Drowning Girl. I liked it, but not as much as The Red Tree.

Also finished Factoring Humanity by Robert J. Sawyer and The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett. If you like Discworld, you will probably like this first book about Tiffany Aching, witch in training and the wee free men, who are blue pixies wearing kilts and speaking with a Scottish accent. I liked it a lot.

Factoring Humanity is a 1998 first contact novel which I found to have aged rather well. But beware, it's also heavy on character relationships beside the science fiction plot. It was read by Katherine Kellgren who was as wonderful as always.

In between the longer audiobooks, I have listened to the BBC dramatization of Stephen Baxter's Voyage. This is an alternate history where president Kennedy has survived and led the Americans not only to the Moon, but also to Mars. I liked it, but I thought it was a bit short for all the things that were happening. It made me want to read the book, though.

I am currently stocking up on Robert J. Sawyer's older stuff in audio format, and I am now listening to one of my favorites of his, Illegal Alien. The aliens have landed - or rather crash landed - on Earth. A human is murdered and one of the aliens is suspected of having done away with him. This is a courtroom drama with an alien defendant, very well done in my opinion.

I am also listening to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain, read by Grover Gardner who is just perfect for this story which was one of my favorite childhood books.

Reading On Basilisk Station by David Weber, read by Allyson Johnson. This is the first book in the Honor Harrington Series, and it's an excellent book. Sadly, however, it's a horrible reader. The pronunciation of key words is totally wrong, and the accents given various characters are inappropriate and quite jarring. I'm going to finish this book,but I doubt I'll be able to read the rest of the series.

Well, it does get better. Still not great, but good enough that I can continue to read it. I moved on to The Honor of the Queen, which I just finished. Not sure whether I will read A Short Victorious War next, or perhaps C. J. Cherryh's Cyteen. I have both on my FireHD right now, so it could be either.

As my personal reading goal for this year is to read or listen to at least 12 classics (I am regrettably uneducated in this area ), I have now started The Call of the Wild by Jack London. Um ... interesting. I didn't know this was told from the point of view of a dog and I still don't know what to make of it. I usually don't read fiction with animal protagonists, it just isn't my sort of thing. But the narration by William Roberts is more than decent, so I guess it will carry me through.

I ran through my supply of audiobooks from the Foreigner series around the same time that Google Play Books updated to allow EPUB uploads, so I've been making do with GPB's "high quality" text-to-speech option for the next book in the series. It's obviously not the same as a human reading the text, but I have no problem following it, which is saying quite a bit with Cherryh's exotic names, alien languages, and inconsistently tagged dialogue.

As my personal reading goal for this year is to read or listen to at least 12 classics (I am regrettably uneducated in this area ), I have now started The Call of the Wild by Jack London.

Finished it and liked it. As I said, I usually don't read books with animal protagonists, but this being a classic, I am glad I have made an exception. It was read by William Roberts who did a fine job.

Also finished Illegal Alien by Robert J. Sawyer. It was as enjoyable as ever. And even though I reread it last year, I had already forgotten the twist at the end. I must be getting old.

Also listened to the free sample story from Neil Gaiman's Smoke & Mirrors which I got recently from Audible: Shoggoth's Old Peculiar. I love it when he dives into Lovecraftian territory, and this story is no exception. It is read by the author himself and it is a wonderful reading (like always). I also liked the included sample from his new book quite a bit.

I am currently listening to Barrayar by Lois McMaster Bujold, read by Grover Gardner. Really like it. I read the two Cordelia books in the series ages ago and liked them a lot. Hopefully, they will get me into the mood to continue with the series.

I am also listening to another classic, Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson, another one I have never read before. I am enjoying it so far.

I am also listening to another classic, Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson, another one I have never read before. I am enjoying it so far.

I loved Treasure Island as a kid, and I picked it up as an adult thinking, "Well, this'll be quaint." Instead, I found it every bit as exciting and gripping as I remembered. Enjoy, Marrella!

I just finished Kim Stanley Robinson's 2312 (which just won the Nebula Award for Best Novel). Much of it is absolutely brilliant, a tour through a very inventive Solar System society 300 years from now. But be warned, it is S-L-O-W. I had to push myself through it because the genius parts were so good, but it takes incredible patience. I understand that the print version runs something like 580 pages. If I had been the editor, I'd have sent it back to him and told him to cut about 150 to 200 pages and resubmit. It desperately needs editing.

I have now started The Call of the Wild by Jack London. Um ... interesting. I didn't know this was told from the point of view of a dog and I still don't know what to make of it. I usually don't read fiction with animal protagonists, it just isn't my sort of thing. But the narration by William Roberts is more than decent, so I guess it will carry me through.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marrella

Finished it and liked it. As I said, I usually don't read books with animal protagonists, but this being a classic, I am glad I have made an exception. It was read by William Roberts who did a fine job.

This was an exceptional book that for some unexplained reason I had never read. I enjoyed it immensely.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marrella

Also finished Illegal Alien by Robert J. Sawyer. It was as enjoyable as ever. And even though I reread it last year, I had already forgotten the twist at the end. I must be getting old.

Hmmm. Someone said that if we're lucky, we'll eventually get to where we only read a single book, forgetting it enough to enjoy the beginning by the time we finish. I'm not quite to THAT point yet, but I must say I'm enjoying more re-reads than I ever did.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marrella

I am currently listening to Barrayar by Lois McMaster Bujold, read by Grover Gardner. Really like it. I read the two Cordelia books in the series ages ago and liked them a lot. Hopefully, they will get me into the mood to continue with the series.

An excellent series, and very well read by Mr. Gardner. I've enjoyed it quite a bit, and recently re-read the series in a mix of audio and ebook forms.

Speaking of re-reads, I'm currently listening to A Short Victorious War, read by Allyson Johnson. An unfortunate reader choice, her use of inappropriate accents is quite jarring. On the other hand, they're good stories and one eventually gets used to her narration, though I certainly haven't learned to like it.